RoboSapien

My 8 year old son has always been really interested in robots, so when last Christmas rolled around, my brother bought him the funky 14-inch tall, remote-controlled RoboSapien.It uses 4 D batteries, and it features 67 pre-programmed functions.The 21-button wireless remote, which uses 3 AAA batteries, can make the RoboSapien perform some pretty cool tricks, including walking, dancing, "talking", kung fu chops, picking up and throwing objects, and belching (my son is a big fan of that last one!).I thought that this might be the kind of toy that would quickly end up abandoned on a shelf, but my son really does play with this!

Although I was initially afraid that the number and range of functions might make this toy prohibitively complex for kids as young as mine, both my son and my daughter (age 7) are able to operate this robot to their satisfaction.Which is not to say that I have any idea how it works, mind you!But since it was completely functional right out of the box, I didn't even have to sit and program anything....so no worries!The battery life on this toy is surprisingly long, and it even shuts itself off after 20 minutes of inactivity.

My kids have gotten hours of entertainment with this cool toy.Their latest favorite thing to do with it is to make it play fetch with our new puppy.Although the price tag is on the high side, this robot is definitely cool enough to make the price worthwhile!